A Noble Union
by Cyber Emblem
Summary: This story is essentially what I believe to be the logical conclusion of Klein and Tate/Thea's A support from FE 6: Binding Blade. Written in a third person narrative style.


_Hey guys! It's Cyber Emblem! I had a nice break from writing fanfiction, but now, I'm ready to start writing again. Not at the same pace that I used to, I have plenty of other stuff going on this summer, but I made some promises, and so I want to live up to them. Here is the first of those one shots that I had promised as I was writing the finale for Crusaders Reborn. This one is Klein and Tate/Thea centric (I went with Thea here)._

 _I know the structure is a bit weird, I've noticed that I write one-shots with little to no dialogue for some reason, but I hope it's an enjoyable read regardless. Basically, what this fic amounts to is a narrative analysis of what my idea of what the logical outcome of this couple's "A" support is._

 _I hope you guys enjoy, and if you want to know what is next… I had actually intended to write a Phina centric fic first, but then I discovered that she isn't even listed on the Fire Emblem character sheet on so… I'll need to find a loophole to draw attention to it if I want to make it. Maybe make this the first story in a collection…_

 _If I don't do that next, I had a guest reader who was leaving reviews for me at the end of my ongoing's run, and he said he wanted a Rhys x Mia fic when I brought it up, so I might do that for them as a thank you for the support. Anyways, on with the story! Please leave a review and enjoy!_

After the war, the rumors spread quickly throughout Etruria. That Lord Klein of Reglay had his eye on a woman of Illia whom he kept close by hiring as a guard while he was engaged abroad thanks to his ambassadorial duties.

It brought never-ending controversy to the kingdom. While Klein never publically stated that he intended to marry Thea, it was readily obvious that he was amorous towards her, and he refused to deny any allegations that he considered her anything more than a friend.

Thus the nobility took that as an admission of guilt and cried foul about his relationship, constantly demanding that he "repent of his adultery" and "return to the straight and narrow" (Despite the fact that he had not once slept with her).

The nobility of course, had their own reasons for their persecution other than prejudice. After Lord Roartz's attempt to seize the throne and the exposure of his activities in the Western Isles, the nobility in Etruria had suddenly found itself on very shaking ground, especially in the eyes of the new king who had seen their corruption first-hand.

Thus, the noble houses were scrambling to find ways to find favor in his eyes, and one method that they perceived was through Lord Klein. King Mildain's fondness for Lord Klein was a well-known fact, and so it was hoped by many of the houses that by securing Klein as a husband for one of their daughters, they could win the king's favor.

The idea that a common mercenary from _Illia_ could steal this prize away from them… did not sit well in the minds of many of the nobles. Some wanted to try and assassinate her, or hire her then promptly send her on a suicide mission, but balked when they considered the ways in such an attempt to get rid of her could fail or backfire, so they left her alone.

The common folk of Etruria were equally upset by the rumors… for slightly different reasons. They did not mind so much that the object of such a popular man's affection was a commoner. In fact, many thought it a good example of how a noble should treat his people. It also sparked the hopes and fantasies of many young ladies, as the possibility of him marrying a commoner opened up the possibility of OTHER nobles following his lead and marrying commoners.

This however actually lead to their problem. If Lord Klein was going to fall in love with a commoner, then why couldn't it be an Etrurian girl? Why did it have to be of all things, and Illian?

While this helped fueled some tensions with Illia, it also sparked a bit of admiration, and stories of the seductive prowess of Illian women as a whole began to become widespread.

The reason being that if Lord Klein did decide to marry her against all protestations, he would be the third high ranking lord in Eliibe in the last two generations to choose an Illian bride instead of a noblewoman, following in the footsteps of the Marquees Eliwood and Hector of Lycia.

The ladies Ninian and Florina had been well loved despite the controversy surrounding them, and so thus, a number of citizens proclaimed that judgment should be withheld on the object of Lord Klein's affections.

As for how Lord Klein himself felt and was advised about all of this… his sister, the Lady Clarine, was made distraught by the mere fact that the accusation was made, and then even more distraught by his refusal to deny it. She bore no ill will towards Thea herself, but this was a situation she had difficulty accepting.

One tactic that some of the nobles tried to employ to split Klein and Thea up was to confront his parents about it, and then in turn, have them confront him. However, Lord Pent and Lady Louise were far more understanding than they had been expecting. They had been friends with Queen Hellene of Bern and that combined with the recent war… made them highly aware of the consequences of forcing a loveless match in order to keep a bloodline "noble".

Thus, they weren't willing to confront their son over his amore. In fact, they were completely willing to accept it if Klein decided he was going to break from tradition, as they did not want such a fate to befall their children and grandchildren. The fact that they knew for certain that the king would do everything in his power to assist Klein in such an endeavor strengthened their decision.

They told their son as much, and were actually quite pleased with his response. He explained to them that while he was fond of her, he wasn't ready to take a rash action. Neither he nor Thea were really the type to take rash action, thus the actually had no plans to marry as of yet. Especially with the storm it would unleash so close to the end of the war.

Klein still intended to court her, but he intended to wait for another major political change before he made his move, if he made one at all. (He sounded insincere about the "if at all" part though) Then he gave a hint that such a change might have something to do with Illia.

Satisfied that their son had thought things through, Pent and Louise vigorously defended their son's actions to all comers and assured them he wasn't about to do something extremely rash. Of course, this simply made everybody wonder just what game Klein was playing at.

Soon enough, all became clear. Within a couple of years of the war with Bern, all the various mercenary leagues in Illia united and joined under one banner, and together they proclaimed their leader to be the first king of Illia.

While such a move inevitably brought controversy to Etruria, Lord Klein gave the movement his ardent support, as did the king, which actually brought many people over and helped to guarantee its success and a successful alliance with the newfound kingdom.

There were various guesses for why Lord Klein supported this movement. His beliefs that everybody should be treaty as equals was fairly well known, so some believed that this was the natural conclusion of those beliefs.

Others knew that he had fought alongside this new king during the war against Bern. So they surmised that his support came out of a sense of friendship spawned from that conflict and out of a belief that he would genuinely make a good king.

While both of these reasons were true, Klein actually had a third reason, which the most astute of the nobles eventually realized, to their horror.

They weren't the first to guess it though, Clarine was. She saw through it almost immediately, and explained it to her parents. They asked Klein if that was his gambit, and he admitted that it was. They admitted that it was a clever one.

What was his tactic? To take advantage of the new political structure in Illia so that he would have an excuse to marry Thea. How did the new political structure affect her? Simple, the new queen was Thea's elder sister. This technically made Thea a noble and a part of a royal court. Thus, if Klein married her now, he technically wouldn't be marrying a commoner.

Sure this wouldn't stop complaints completely or people from crying foul, but it would decrease those cries at least somewhat and in enough generations, it wouldn't matter anymore. Plus, such a union would be politically advantageous to an alliance with the Kingdom of Illia. Anyone could see that plainly.

Thus, Lord Klein got his way and got his Pegasus knight bride. Many tears were wept across the land. Some happy, some bitter, some angry, but regardless of the emotional reaction and their opinions on the bride, it was eventually decided that it worked out for the best and that she made the perfect match for him. The Lady Thea was ultimately remembered very fondly by Etrurian history.


End file.
